Pile driving apparatus



Patented May 8, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE and Charles Lose,

Jr., Cranford, N. J.

Application December 7, 1931, Serial No. 579,626

4 Claims.

This invention relates to pile driving apparatus of the general type in which a lead, as it is usually called, is suspended from the free end of the adjustable boom of a portable hoisting apparatus 5 and serves as a guide for a hammer by which a pile may be driven into the soil by successive imacts. p In apparatus of this type as heretofore constructed the lead has been formed of two spaced parallel members which serve as guides for the hammer which is suspended between them by a suitable cable controlled from the winch of the hoisting apparatus. This arrangement possesses the disadvantage that the piles must also be placed [5 between the members of the lead in position to be driven by the hammer. This is inconvenient and requires time and consequent expense in properly placing the piles in their initial positions. Furthermore, the weight of the lead due to the fact that it is composed of two members with suitable connecting pieces is considerable and lessens the angle at which the boom may be inclined from a vertical position without danger of the apparatus being upset.

When open end piles are being driven a further disadvantage is present for it is usually necessary to blow out the core of earth which accumulates within the pile as it is driven into the earth, in

' order that the pile may be filled with suitable foundation material, such as concrete. This is ordinarily accomplished by compressed air which is liberated within the pile by means of a blow pipe which is lowered into the pile. This means that the hammer must be removed and placed aside to give clearance for the inserting of the blow pipe which is then put in the pile. After the blowing operation has been performed the blow pipe must be removed and the hammer picked up and put in place before further driving of the pile can be resumed.

Ordinary pipe sections having a length of approximately 20 feet are commonly used as piles. Where penetration is in excess of that length two or more pipe sections are used to make up the complete pile. Due to the fact that the exact penetration cannot be predetermined at the completion of the driving operation, the top of the pile ordinarily extends above the point required by the specifications for the particular job. This requires that the pipe be cut off at the designated point. This leaves pieces of pipe of various lengths, the shorter ones of which are too short to be properly supported in the false work which is employed for guiding the pile while it is being driven into the ground.

With the use of pile driving apparatus of the type in which the hanging lead is formed of a pair of parallel spaced members, it is impossible to drive vertical sheeting for the lead cannot be moved sidewise of the member first inserted to permit an adjoining member to be driven.

Pile driving apparatus of the general type described above has been used in which the bottom of the lead is connected to the turntable of the hoisting apparatus by suitable members attached to the turntable in order that the lead may be properly held against swinging when the hammer is in operation. These members extend beyond the lead and are arranged to be connected to the lead in order to permit the configuration of the boom and lead to be changed. The portions of the members which extend in front of the lead increase the difficulty of placing the piles in place between the members of which it is composed.

It is a general object of this invention to improve the apparatus heretofore used for driving piles or other structural elements, to the end that they may be more conveniently and quickly positioned for the driving operation which also may be more readily performed as less time will be required for the preliminary positioning of the pile as well as for subsequent operations, such as blowing out the contents of the piles.

This object is attained by the provision of a hanging lead composed of a single guide member upon the front of which the hammer is slidably mounted, thereby decreasing the weight of the lead and permitting the piles to be more quickly initially positioned for the subsequent driving operation. An improved connection between the turntable of the hoisting apparatus and the bottom of the lead is employed. It is adjustable both longitudinally and laterally and so made that it may be readily altered to conform to various inclinations of the boom and the position of the hoisting apparatus without in any way interfering with the convenient placing of piles in front of the hanging lead.

The particular nature of the invention, as well as other objects and advantages thereof, will appear more clearly from a description of a preferred embodiment as shown in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the apparatus showing alternative positions of certain elements thereof;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged elevational view of certain parts partly in section along the line 2-2 of Fig. 3;

attached to the, cross-piece of the frame.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the same parts partly in section along the line 33 of Fig. 1:

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view partly in section along the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 and Fig. 5 is a similar view along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

In Fig. 1, 1 indicates generally a portable crane of the type having a tractor 2 and a rotatable turntable 3 on which is a cab 4 contain ing a hoisting engine for driving a drum 5. A boom 6 is pivoted to the turntable at 7 and is adjusted by means of a cable 8 controlled by the usual mechanism in the cab. The free end ofthe boom carries a pulley 9 mounted on a shaft 10, the ends of which are extended beyond the side frames of the boom to serve as bearings for the bifurcated upper end 11 of a hanging lead 12 which as shown most clearly in Fig. 5 consists of an I beam, although it will be understood that any other suitable form of beam may be usedQ Slidably mounted on the front flanges of the lead is a. hammer 13 of any suitable construction which is surrounded by a pair of straps 14 to each of which is attached a pair of members 15 fitting over the edges of the flanges. The position of the hammer may be adjusted as required by means of a cable 16 having one end attached to the boom as at 16 and passing through a pulley 1'? attached to the hammer from which the cable passes over the pulley 9 to the drum 5.

Pivoted to the turntable 3 as by means of bolts 18 is a U shaped frame 19 having a cross piece 19' to which is attached a pair of angular members 20. Links 21 are pivoted to the projecting portions of the members 20 by any suitable devices, such as bolts 22, and are connected in a similar manner, as by bolts 23, to corresponding links 24 which in turn are pivoted to a block 25 by a bolt 26. Fitted within a recess in the block 25 and retained therein by a removable plate 2'7 is the head of a screw 28 which passes through the frame 19 and a retainer 29 The threaded portion of the screw passes through a hand wheel 30 placed between the frame 19 and the retainer 29 whereby the distance between the frame and the block 25 may be altered for purposes which will presently appear.

The block 25 is attached to the flanges of a relatively short member 31 of I shaped cross section which is slidably mounted on the rear flanges of the lead 12 by means of guides 32 bolted to the rib of the member 31. The outer flanges of the member 31 are provided with equally spaced holes, as indicated at 33, while co-acting holes, as indicated at 34, are provided in the inner flanges of the lead 12, the latter holes being spaced at a lesser distance than are the holes 33. This arrangement permits a relatively fine adjustment of the member 31 upon the lead 12, in the nature of a vernier, by fastening them together by bolts 35 passed through the desired co-acting holes.

In the use of the apparatus, which is illustrated with the crane upon sloping ground 36, and assuming that a pile 3'7 is to be sunk at a particular point, the boom 6 is so adjusted that when the pile is placed at the desired point and in front of the lead. the latter will be properly positioned for the hammer 13 to co-act with the pile to sink it by successive impacts in the usual manner. Such an adjustment of the boom and lead will require manipulation of the parts connecting the .lower end of the turntable of the crane.

This manipulation consists in suitably connecting the member 31 to the lead at such a point that the screw 28 is substantially horizontal and adjusting the screw by means of hand wheel 30 in accordance with the horizontal distance between the lead and the part of the turntable to which the member 19 is connected. When the parts are properly adjusted the lead will be substantially vertical, assuming that the pile is to be driven vertically into the ground.

If as is sometimes required, the piles are to be driven in some other direction, as in case of batter piles, a simple adjustment of the above described elements permits the lead to be placed at the required inclination for this purpose.

When an adjacent pile 3'? is to be driven, the boom is suitably adjusted to bring the lead in the desired position. This will require a repositioning of the member 31 on the lead and a readjustment of the screw 28. The links 21 and 24 alter their relative positions in accordance with the adjustment of the screw and serve to brace the mechanism to lessen the danger of breakage of the screw as might occur were it the only connection between the frame 19 and the lead.

The apparatus disclosed herein is particularly adapted for driving sheeting either vertically or at an angle, for since the hammer is maintained on the front face of the lead, adjoining members of the sheeting may be successively driven by merely changing the position of the lead 12 by suitable manipulation of the boom 6, by bodily movement of the crane as a whole or by rotation of its turntable 3.

With the apparatus disclosed, the necessity for using false work for properly guiding the pile during driving is eliminated. It need only be held at its lower end by contact with the earth or by its penetration into the earth, and at its upper end by the usual socket which forms a part of most steam or pneumatic hammers at present used for this purpose, for the proper positioning and aligning of the pile may be maintained or corrected by suitable manipulation of the adjustable connection between the turntable of the crane and the lead and swinging of the boom.

lead with the By virtue of this advantage the pile is also held in proper contact with the hammer so that its blows are struck in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the pile which eliminates the chance of a glancing blow deflecting the pile from its true alignment. Since the hammer blows are struck uniformly on the upper end of the pile, crumpling of its top with attendant delay and waste of material is prevented.

As no false work is required, the short pieces of pipe that are ordinarily discarded may be utilized by being connected to other sections of standard length to make up a pile of therequired penetration.

When open end piles are being driven and their interiors require to be blown out, it is only necessary to lift the "hammer 12 from the top of the partly or completely driven pile and swing the boom 6 and lead 12 to one side to carry the hammer out of the way so that a blow pipe may be inserted in the pile. After the blowing operation is completed, the hammer may be as quickly restored to its working position as it was removed therefrom.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it will be understood that it may be embodied in other forms and that various changes in its structural details may be made without departing from the principle of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:-

1. In pile driving apparatus, the combination of hoisting mechanism, a boom pivotally connected thereto, a lead of I shaped cross section suspended from the upper end of the boom, a member provided with parts slidably fitting over the flanges of the front face of the lead, a hammer mounted in the member and an adjustable connection between the hoisting mechanism and the flanges of the rear face of the lead at its lower end.

2. In pile driving apparatus, the combination of hoisting mechanism, a boom pivotally connected thereto, a lead suspended from the upper end of the boom and provided at its lower end with a plurality of spaced apertures, a hammer slidably mounted on the lead, a member provided with a plurality of apertures, the spacing of which bears a predetermined relation to the distances between the apertures in the lead, said apertures being adapted to receive fastening devices whereby the member may be connected to the lead at various positions difiering from each other by a distance less than that between the apertures which are the least separated, a member pivotally connected to the hoisting mechanism and mechanism connected between the members for changing their relation in accordance with changes in the relation between the boom and the lead.

3. In pile driving apparatus comprising a portable supporting structure, a boom having its lower end pivotally connected to the supporting structure, a lead pivotally suspended from the upper end of the boom, a U-shaped bracket pivotally connected to the supporting structure and having a cross-piece, a retainer fixed to the cross-piece, a block secured adjacent to the lower end portion of the lead, toggle links pivotally connecting the block to said bracket, a screw havin its head fixed to the block and having a threaded portion extending loosely through said cross-piece and the retainer, and a wheel nut engagin the threads of the screw and positioned between the retainer and the cross-piece.

4. A pile driving apparatus comprising a portable supporting structure, a boom having its lower end pivotally connected to the supporting structure, a lead suspended from the upper end of the boom, said lead being of I-shape in cross section, a block slidably mounted upon the rear face of the lead, means for adjustably securing the block to the lead at various positions of adjustment lengthwise of the lead, an adjustable connection joining the block to the supporting structure for holding the lower end portion of the lead in various positions relatively to the supporting structure, a hammer slidably mounted on the front face of said lead, and means for raising and lowering said hammer.

JOHN B. GOLDSBOROUGH. CHARLES LOSE, JR. 

